On Foundations of Seismology

Bringing Idealizations Down to Earth

This remarkable collaboration between a mathematical physicist and a science philosopher concerns foundational and conceptual issues in seismology. Their aim is to present mathematical, physical and philosophical topics in a clear and concise manner. They provide an extensive philosophical discussion of the methods of science and show how seismology fits in. They explain with care and precision the basic structure of seismology, which is built on classical continuum mechanics. Not only do they explain how various models work in seismology, they also include an extensive discussion of the nature of models and idealizations.

Contents:

• Preface
• Aspects of Seismological Theory
• Nature of Science and Its Methods
• On Continua and Models
• Continuum Mechanics: General Principles, Constitutive Relations
• Hookean Solids
• Forward and Inverse Problems
• Intertheory and Intratheory Relations
• Afterword
• Bibliography
• Subject Index
• Name Index
• About the Authors and Illustrator

Readership: Students and researchers in natural sciences and in philosophy of science.
Key Features:

• This book is unique in the field; it is the only work devoted to foundational issues in seismology
• It provides a serious introduction to the philosophy of science, which many working scientists will find both interesting and useful in their own research